Zucchini, Black Bean and Chicken Burritos on the Grill Recipe

Editor's note: Philadelphia food writers Joy Manning and Tara Mataraza Desmond drop by each week with Meat Lite, which celebrates meat in moderation. Meat Lite was inspired by their book, Almost Meatless.

There's plenty of real estate on those grill grates for more than just burgers and giant slabs of meat. In the summer, the grill comes in handy for direct open-flame cooking, for simulating roasting, and for reheating or gently heating all kinds of ingredients. This recipe is fast and cooked completely on the grill, keeping things cool in the kitchen and clean up easy. One 1-pound chicken breast fills out the marinated zucchini and black bean mixture that becomes the filling for the burrito.

Grilling chicken with the skin on and bone in helps keep the meat tender and juicy. You can peel the skin away before serving if you prefer, and you'll cut the meat from the bone to serve. It takes a little longer to cook chicken through when the bone is in, but it will prevent the stiff, flavorless results so commonly endured with grilled boneless, skinless chicken breasts.

If you're eating with vegetarian family or friends, don't mix the chicken in with the veggies and beans before serving, and make this a meat-optional meal.

Ingredients

2 medium zucchini (about 2 pounds), cut into 1/4-inch pieces

1 1/2 cups cooked black beans (or 1 15-ounce can)

1 small red onion, sliced thin

2 cloves garlic, peeled and sliced thin

2 tablespoons white wine vinegar

2 tablespoons olive oil

1 1/2 teaspoon ground cumin

1 teaspoon coarse salt

1/4 teasppon freshly ground black pepper

1 pound bone in, skin on chicken breast (1 split chicken breast)

Fresh cilantro leaves for garnish

4 burrito size flour tortillas

Sour cream (optional)

Shredded cheese (optional)

About the author:Tara Mataraza Desmond writes about, cooks, and eats food for a living. She blogs about food and life through words and pictures at Crumbs On My Keyboard.

Season the chicken breast with salt and pepper, and baste with about 1 teaspoon of oil.

4.

Put the marinated veggies and beans on a sizeable piece of foil (about 24 inches long) and arrange the mixture in a long thin pile. Pull the long sides of the foil up over the pile and tuck the edges together to enclose the mixture.

5.

Put the veggie package and the chicken breast on the hot grill grates and grill 15-20 minutes, until the chicken is done and the vegetables are hot and just tender. Turn the chicken once while it cooks.

6.

Let the chicken rest about 5 minutes before slicing into thin strips. While the chicken rests, put the tortillas directly on the hot grill grates and grill about 1 minute per side, until hot and slightly scorched.

7.

Toss the grilled chicken strips with the veggies and beans. Put several heaping spoonfuls of the mixture in the middle of each tortilla, top with cilantro, sour cream and cheese and fold into a burrito.

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